Drug Treatment Proposals

House Government Reform Committee - Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy and Human Resources

Today, the Committee on Governmental Affairs is holding a hearing to consider the nominations of Clark Kent Ervin to be Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security, Janet Hale to be Under Secretary for Management at the Department of Homeland Security, and Linda Springer to be Controller of the Office of Federal Financial Management at the Office of Management and Budget.

In January, the Committee considered the nominations of Toro Ridge to be Secretary of the new Department of Homeland Security and Gordon England to be Deputy Secretary. I am pleased that today the Committee is considering the next set of Homeland Security nominees - Mr. Ervin and Ms. Hale—both of whom appear to bring strong credentials and experience to the positions to which they have been nominated.

The Department of Homeland Security officially opened its doors on January 24th. The establishment of the Department of Homeland Security is the most significant government restructuring in more than fifty years. It involves the merger of twenty-two agencies and some 170,000 federal employees. The creation of the Department of Homeland Security is an enormous undertaking that will take a team effort to ensure its success.

As part of that team, the Under Secretary for Management, who will be responsible for the organizational management of the new Department, will have a particularly challenging job. With this massive merger, the Under Secretary for Management will have to work to integrate disparate management, human resources, and information technology systems. Ms. Hale's extensive background in management, from both the public and private sectors, appears to be ideal for undertaking the integration and management of these systems.

Another critical member of the homeland security team is the Inspector General. For more than twenty years, the Inspectors General have been the "watchdogs" for Congress and the taxpayers in the ongoing fight against waste, fraud, and abuse.

The DHS IG will face extraordinary challenges. Audit and investigative components from various agencies must be integrated into a single entity within the Department. The IG is also responsible for performing annual audits of the Coast Guard to ensure that its new homeland security responsibilities do not divert attention from its traditional roles, including search and rescue missions.

Both the Under Secretary for Management and the Inspector General will be crucial to the successful organization and proper management of this new Department.

I am also pleased that today we are considering the nomination of Linda Springer to be Controller of the Office of Federal Financial Management at OMB. The Controller acts as the "deputy and principal advisor" to the Deputy Director for Management in carrying out the financial management duties as outlined in the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990. The position of Controller is critical to ensuring that the financial management systems in the Executive Branch are efficient, accurate, and reliable. The person who assumes this role must have a strong background in financial systems and management. Ms. Springer's background appears to be tailor-made for this position.

It is now my pleasure to recognize my distinguished colleagues from the State of Texas to introduce Mr. Ervin. We will start with the Senior Senator, Senator Hutchison. It is also my pleasure to recognize my colleague, Senator Dole, to introduce Janet Hale.